Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes of the Flathead Nation

They were incorrectly called the Flathead Indians by the first Europeans who came to the area. The Flatheads call themselves Salish, meaning “the people”. These people never practiced head flattening, but their Columbia River neighbors shaped their own heads to create a pointed appearance, and called the Salish "flatheads" in contrast.

Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes of the Flathead Nation

They were incorrectly called the Flathead Indians by the first Europeans who came to the area. The Flatheads call themselves Salish, meaning “the people”. These people never practiced head flattening, but their Columbia River neighbors shaped their own heads to create a pointed appearance, and called the Salish "flatheads" in contrast.